GILDER, Rosamond; GIELGUD, John. John Gielgud's Hamlet: A Record of Performance with The Hamlet Tradition: Some notes on costume scenery and stage business. London: Methuen. 1937. 8vo. First edition. Publisher’s pale yellow cloth lettered in black to the spine, in the dust jacket. This copy signed by Gielgud on the portrait frontispiece of him, together with an ALS by Gielgud to Eileen Crowe, turning down the chance to meet after a show as he ‘wants to relax’. The letter is accompanied by the pencil draft of Crowe’s initial letter to Gielgud, and another unrelated, in Gielgud’s stamped return envelope. A very good copy, the cloth clean and bright, gently bumped at corners. The binding tight and square, the contents clean, with Crowe’s ink signature to front endpaper, a few very mild spots to textblock, else fine. The dust jacket unclipped (5s net), rubbed and slightly chipped at the spine tips and corners, some all-round grubbiness and marks.
A prompt book and picture book produced for students of Shakespeare and for fans of John Gielgud. Together with Gielgud’s own self-assessment and commentary on costume and stage direction, Gilder’s intimate and insightful study of Gielgud was praised on publication—Sheridan Morley, in his biography of Gielgud, called it "perhaps the most remarkably detailed account of any one actor in any one role that has ever been published” (139). Punctuating the text are twelve illustrations including reproductions of the original drawings for both his London and New York productions of the play. Uncommon in the jacket, scarce signed and with ALS.
GILDER, Rosamond; GIELGUD, John. John Gielgud's Hamlet: A Record of Performance with The Hamlet Tradition: Some notes on costume scenery and stage business. London: Methuen. 1937. 8vo. First edition. Publisher’s pale yellow cloth lettered in black to the spine, in the dust jacket. This copy signed by Gielgud on the portrait frontispiece of him, together with an ALS by Gielgud to Eileen Crowe, turning down the chance to meet after a show as he ‘wants to relax’. The letter is accompanied by the pencil draft of Crowe’s initial letter to Gielgud, and another unrelated, in Gielgud’s stamped return envelope. A very good copy, the cloth clean and bright, gently bumped at corners. The binding tight and square, the contents clean, with Crowe’s ink signature to front endpaper, a few very mild spots to textblock, else fine. The dust jacket unclipped (5s net), rubbed and slightly chipped at the spine tips and corners, some all-round grubbiness and marks.
A prompt book and picture book produced for students of Shakespeare and for fans of John Gielgud. Together with Gielgud’s own self-assessment and commentary on costume and stage direction, Gilder’s intimate and insightful study of Gielgud was praised on publication—Sheridan Morley, in his biography of Gielgud, called it "perhaps the most remarkably detailed account of any one actor in any one role that has ever been published” (139). Punctuating the text are twelve illustrations including reproductions of the original drawings for both his London and New York productions of the play. Uncommon in the jacket, scarce signed and with ALS.
